I recently took my first trip beyond the contiguous U.S. to Puerto Rico and had the pleasure of staying at Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve for a few days. Situated on a former Rockefeller estate, the 50-acre island retreat is full of lush vegetation and features stunning ocean views. It was the perfect dog-friendly getaway and we were lucky to have beautiful weather the entire time we were there!

I spent most of my days frolicking on the beach, relaxing in the resort's cozy hammocks with the wind in my hair, and eating really delicious food! All of Dorado Beach's restaurants have pup-friendly outdoor dining options (my human especially loved casual lunches by the pool at Positivo Sand Bar and an amazing dinner at Mi Casa). I also indulged in a few gourmet in-suite meals (dog bowls + bottled water were provided) and enjoyed the ocean-front views from the terrace of my East Beach Ocean Reserve room.

Speaking of my room, with over 900 square feet it felt incredibly spacious (especially since I'm used to NYC-sized accommodations) - having a walk-in closet is always a plus and I loved having an outdoor shower to rinse off the sand at the end of the day. I'm notoriously picky when it comes to my sleeping environment, but I'm happy to report that my king size bed was extremely comfortable and I slept like a puppy every night (if your pup prefers their own bed, the resort can provide those as well)!

Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve provided a personalized beach tent that was perfect for keeping me cool in the shade while my human worked on her tan, and we always had cold bottled water to stay hydrated as well! This was my first trip to the beach, but early morning romps in the sand quickly became one of my favorite things! If you have a more adventurous dog, the water temps are perfect for swimming - I dipped my paws in and also took advantage of the resort's Ambassadors of the Environment program and went kayaking with the humans (obviously I wore my shark fin life vest, but they can provide vests if you don't bring your own)!

If you bring your humans along, tell them not to miss the spa - while it's not dog-friendly, my human said "I could spend all day here and not want to leave" - she definitely enjoyed her massage!